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At Star of Bethlehem we carry a wonderful variety of unique, hand crafted religious and gift items. Our Olive wood gifts are handcrafted by local artisans in shops across the region -- an ancient art form that dates back to the time of the Crusades.

Unique individual Christian religious crafts make a special gift for a loved one and the Holy Land Olive Wood or Bethlehem Olive Wood offers a richness and texture not found in other Olive woods.
The oldest olive trees in Holy Land are located in the cities of Bethlehem and Jerusalem.
The older the olive tree the more grains and textures in it's wood.

Our hand carved Christian crafts are made of cultivated olive wood trees from Bethlehem and the Holy Land.
The olive tree, highly regarded since the ancient times, features wood with distinctive grains and by nature is heavy, dense, and durable. Historians say the first olive groves took root in the Holy Land and along the coast of the eastern Mediterranean around 4,000 B.C

According to the Bible, it is believed that Jesus prayed underneath an Olive Tree in the Garden of Gethsemane after the Last Supper. This sacred tree is still in existence today and the Bible repeatedly refers to the Olive Tree as a symbol of peace, fertility, and prosperity. In the story of Noah's Ark, a branch from an Olive Tree was brought back to the Ark by Noah's Dove symbolizing peace. On Palm Sunday, pilgrims carry Olive Wood branches commemorating the Lord's entry into Jerusalem.

Each hand carved piece is extraordinarily unique, the varying grains in the Olive wood adding depth and warmth. Olive trees must be at least 150 years old before the wood can be cultivated, and some olive trees are over 1000 years old. The highly skilled and trained Holy Land artisans can tell the age of the woods by the volume of its grain and color, and use this knowledge in creating these unique, one of kind sculpture. The olive tree is a blessed tree in the Holy book and grew in Gethsemane and around Jerusalem where Jesus walked.

Every two years the olive trees are pruned so that they bear fruit. These hand carved masterpieces are made by Christian craftsman living in Bethlehem working with the branches produced by the pruning's. These beautiful handmade crafts make perfect gifts.

Olive wood souvenirs do not require much care, Olive oil is naturally protecting them from corrosion and change of color!